To Spread Marigolds
by TarbageGruck
Summary: Oneshot. After 'Advent Children'. A story where Cloud announces his departure and Tifa accepts. Because he needs it and she is going to stop at nothing to help him piece together what is left.


_To Spread Marigolds  
_

_Disclaimer: I own zip._

_Posted: 1-2-06_

……………………………………………o

The coarse, thick fabric now softened by soaking up stray wetness squeaked softly while polishing off the newly washed cup.

11 o' clock laid out a scene of dim lighting inside a quiet bar and one moving figure clad in black. No, there was another. Also in black, except this one sat with hands entwined and elbows upright against the sleek dark wood of which the hostess served her costumers.

The female placed the recently clean object onto the shelf.

"You're bothered by something." Her back stayed facing her late night companion. That hadn't been a question. A good few years with Master Zangan taught her to become aware of a person's air. His aura had been disrupting the peaceful atmosphere ever since they had gotten back. The rag hung limply in her hands.

"I don't…" He started before trailing off. The fan hanging from the ceiling hummed inaudibly overhead.

Here was the part where she elaborated on what he wanted to say. Their relationship had always been like this. He thought the thoughts, she voiced them out loud eloquently for him to decipher. Then she would help him figure out a path, a solution, a goal, something that could inspire him. It was never quite dull when he wanted to say something.

"Ah." She paused. A tinkle sounded from the background. "Scotch?" She asked, holding up a maroon bottle.

He nodded.

Grabbing two small glasses nearby between her slender fingers, she popped off the cork, releasing golden liquid into its intended containers. Placing one of the glasses down in front of him, she held onto hers. The bottle remained in sight, resting near his drink.

Silence commenced as both partners took a sip. He took a gulp.

Leaning against the shelves facing him, she decided it was time to address what was troubling him. "It's not over. Sephiroth will be back. If not him, then some other maniac hell bent on destroying this planet."

"I know." He said, keeping his gaze on his drink.

"It was a beautiful battle, Cloud." She said. " I couldn't stop watching for a second. Every time you came at him, it was like nothing he did next would be able to compare. But I wasn't impressed…I had always known you had it in you."

"How are you now?" She finished softly.

Cloud blinked, his algae blue eyes heightened by her establishment's lighting. Glazed blue-green flooded with slight confusion before recognition chased it away.

"I'm fine…a little disappointed in myself." He took another meaningful gulp. "I saw her earlier. Aeris. She asked me the same thing you did."

A small sigh escaped his lips. "…I wasted so much time. And now…now I need more time to sort it all out."

She knew what that meant. She knew exactly what that meant. And yet, she realized how much he needed this.

"Where are you going to go?" she asked.

"Somewhere." A minute smile played at his lips.

"Marlene and Denzel will throw a fit."

"I made them worry, didn't I?" Regret flickered in his eyes. "I don't want to make them worry again."

"They'll understand. You need this." She said quietly.

He shook his head this time. "Never mind. Forget it."

Tifa walked intently forward, causing him to raise his eyes to her plush burgundy ones. She placed her hands on the counter, forgetting her drink for the time being. This was going to take some time.

"For two years, you wandered from place to place. You were so…lost. I didn't know how to help you. I was your best friend, and I could only watch as you started to rot from the inside out." Her voice was quiet, in a soothing kind of way.

"Seeing the strength you pulled from within today…that is the Cloud I have wanted to see again for so long. I don't want you to return to what you were a week ago. Give yourself a break, Cloud. Go and find that something that will make you alive again."

"I think you were chosen. I don't know by what or whom, but I know this isn't your last battle. Next time…there will be difficulties you'll have to conquer again. Perhaps it will be twice as hard…but maybe…" She chuckled.

Shaking her head slightly, she smiled encouragingly at him. "I just think now that there is no immediate danger threatening the planet along with the fact there are no physical injuries hindering you…you should take advantage of it."

At this point, she shot him a stern look, one that spoke only half-heartedly. "And stop worrying. We both know how selfish you can be."

Cloud gave a deep laugh. Emptying his glass of scotch, he stood up and stretched a bit.

Grinning softly, Tifa moved to take his cup.

A gloved hand closed around her wrist. "Take a ride with me?"

Her fingers were only millimeters from brushing against the object she intended to reach. The grin on her face changed to surprise at the almost pleading look in his aloofness. He had stopped inviting her along on his nightly escapades ever since Aeris died and even before that, there weren't many times he had wanted company.

"I…want to show you something." His eyes darted a little. "You deserve something for-"

"Cleaning up the bar so well?" Tifa cut in slyly. "Aren't you sweet."

Cloud chuckled, relief overcoming his expression for a split second. His hand fell to his side once more. Hopping over the counter, she decided closing up the place could wait.

Wind washed through her. Pulling serenely at her long dark chocolate locks, whipping past the tense sinews of her exposed muscled arms.

Night was a mysterious element. It brought on a certain peacefulness day could not bring It returned the children to their homes, and warned those who knew of the dangers. Night concealed as well as revealed, depending on the situation, time, or place. It once revealed to her the reality of her thoughts. Helped her shed the burdens she didn't dare show in the daylight. At night, it allowed some people to simply…be.

The motorcycle maneuvered along the out skirts of Midgar. In the blanket of the darkest blue, wild plains of golden wheat along with the breeze ruffled green trees were barely distinguished by their color. The winking stars above replaced the beauty that had come from the ground, tiny, silver speckles floating just beyond anyone's reach. And the moon…the round slice of dazed light with its twinkling minions spread out around it. Nature always had something special to give…always giving. From sunsets to sunrise, from frosted mountain tops to rich, cultivated lands, from cool, fresh drops of rain to the warm, sprinkling sunshine. All the fullness of the world resided in nature. One simply had to know where and when to look.

Tonight, it seemed, she would be rewarded with the very beginnings of a pale yellow sunrise.

Ajit. Tifa recognized the route. The Fenrir cut off from the road with an odd jolt. Tifa squeezed her palms against the worn leather of her best friend's vehicle. An opening dirt road greeted them, showing a long, winding trail up a steep hill and into…into what, she wasn't so sure. Although she had only visited around the area in her intensive training, she had heard it was quite a site to behold from Denzel. From what he could remember, she was told the trees shone the color of pure snow and the water was warm instead of cold. Well, she was about to find out whether he was telling the truth or not.

It was close, she decided. Entering the establishment, her breath began to mist in the chill. The place was magnificent in its structure of life, trees sculpted like smooth, thick extending icicles, grass sprouted high up from the ground, bordering and decorating around the edges of the miniature lakes. Huge charcoal boulders replaced the soil, enormous black mounds creating different heights for the odd leafless trees to grow from.

Ajit was one of the brightest places she had ever seen, unusual how it wasn't overly bright.

Cloud swerved the motorcycle to a stop. Stepping off it, she took a glance around.

"This is where the children were captured." She commented.

"I lost my cell phone here, I think it fell into this lake." He said.

Tifa laughed, putting her hands on her hips in a mock angry stance. "This is all I get? A swim in some lake to search for your cell phone?"

He smiled slightly, but quickly bowed his head, hesitant. "I thought maybe before I go, we could spend some time together …I remember you liked Aeris a lot and we could visit the place she died…"

He suddenly raised his head. "Of course if you'd rather go back, I'd-"

Tifa shook her head almost immediately, smiling kindly at him. She supposed visiting the place where their friend became deceased was Cloud's way of connecting with her before he left. They both loved Aeris; perhaps he needed someone with him as he closed this chapter of his life once and for all.

Arriving upon the still waters, she noted the fireflies were more prominent here, making this particular area more outstandingly magical –if that was possible.

Cloud took her hand unexpectedly, causing her head to jerk in surprise toward him. He wasn't looking at her. Instead, he was watching the lake calmly…watching with detached sorrow and peace.

A friendly gesture, she decided. Giving his gloved hand a small squeeze, she stepped forward into the water. The blue liquid gurgled and splashed from where her foot had entered, tranquil ripples rushed forward, disturbing most of the water's smooth surface. There was one part of the lake where a circle of light filtered through the trees, creating a halo on top of whoever stood under it. A specific dazzling spot that made a person wonder why the pale beam only touched there. That was where she guessed Aeris had been stabbed.

Cloud followed behind her, reading her mind expertly. They trekked through the lake with minimal difficulty. Tifa's socks were now soaked through, but Cloud's boots provided his more protection. They stopped beneath the single shower of impressive yet comforting light, staring up simultaneously for the source. Not that any of them really cared for it. Whether it had been there before Aeris's death or after, neither knew. It was there. And that was what mattered.

A tinge of a flower caressed their smell.

"Marigolds." Cloud said softly. "Those were her favorite kind."

"They were also the ones that cost the lowest in her shop. I think she offered them to every costumer first." Tifa said.

A moment past in silence.

"She knew…didn't she?" Cloud asked, though it was more then obvious he already knew the answer to that.

"Yea…she did." Tifa answered softly. She hesitated. "I used to be jealous."

She turned to see him looking at her. A faint smile graced her features. Her wine-colored eyes didn't waver from his piercing gaze. He had confided in her, had told her and trusted her with many of his secrets. It was now her turn to share with him something she had kept inside.

"She was so carefree. Not a care in the world. Even after all the darkness in her life, she acted as though nothing anyone ever did could destroy her happiness. She was beautiful. She was kind. And I do believe you were a step short of falling in love with her."

Tifa paused, a small teasing grin resting on her lips. His face remained impassive, but she saw his eyes soften just slightly. Their hands were still joined together, but very loosely.

A firefly flittered against her cheek and Tifa reached out to capture it. It fluttered for a moment on the tips of her pointer.

"I tried to act the same way." She continued, "I thought maybe, just maybe I could also regain some of the innocence I had lost at such a young age, like she did."

The bug took off once again. A quiet, musical buzz trailed after its gold-glowing body. Her eyes followed after it. "But I couldn't. I couldn't act like her. No matter how hard I tried." She said softly, almost like an afterthought. Tifa shifted her attention back to her friend.

"I had a talk with her a bit later on. We were discussing what we would do if we were both given another life…a more peaceful life. She opened up to me, and though she didn't outright tell me, I realized it was not innocence that she had, but the sense of life. Her views on how to live were wild and adventurous and though I shouldn't have been, I was surprised to say the least."

"And then she died, and I didn't feel as much sorrow, as a person should have. I told myself it was because I was still jealous of her. That I didn't care about her as much as I thought I did. You were right, Cloud; she knew she was going to have to sacrifice herself for this planet one day. In her situation, there was no time to be sad, no time to be angry at the world. It was either drown in her own self pity, or live as much of the life she wanted as possible."

Tifa paused again, whether to see if she could catch Cloud's reactions to her confession so far, or to compose herself, she wasn't sure. It was her turn to be unsure.

The fresh scent wafting around them grew more noticeable. By now, tears had started to well up, but she knew they wouldn't fall out. Sentimentality never brought much out of her. Bursting into tears had never been a part of her personality.

"I guess in some way, I wish I could tell her this to her face." She chuckled, a faraway look shadowing her claret eyes. "Between having my hometown destroyed and my thoughts of revenge against Sephiroth, I had lost myself amidst all of it. Now, I have it back. And she played a big part in helping me get it back. I don't think she knew it either."

She lowered her gaze. Cloud simply watched her. She knew he understood this was only something she had to get off her chest. There was also another reason, but she was going to let him figure it out.

Silence pervaded.

He smiled slowly. A beautiful, full one. One that stretched across his lips and made his ocean green eyes crinkle at the corners. It had been a long time since she'd seen that smile.

"I'm glad you told me." He said finally.

Tifa laughed. "Really? I thought you might be kind of mad."

"Of course not." He replied with a hint of amusement. "Sometimes, I was jealous of her too."

Tifa's eyes widened in a teasing way, "No! My big, tough Cloud jealous of some flower girl?"

He chuckled. Tightening his hold once more, he tugged at her gently.

"Come on, I have an idea."

He drove them to a field nearby. In the dark, Tifa could only make out a wide, sweet-smelling plain of flowers. Although she couldn't tell, she had a pretty good guess of what kind it was.

Shutting off the engine, he reached into his pant's pocket, pulling out a miniature glowing jar with a screwed lid.

"Fireflies from the lake?" Tifa asked.

He nodded. "This should provide enough light."

Confusion muddled her brain. What could he have in mind? "Did you lose something here?"

A small smile curved his lips. Bending down, he broke at least a dozen darkened orange blossoms from their stems, holding the bunch up as if to scrutinize them. Carefully, he plucked five from his grasp, his brows slightly furrowed in deep concentration. Releasing three more, he now had four left.

Tifa decided it was best not to comment.

After a moment of even more inspection, he turned to her. His eyes twinkled from the captured, radiant bugs. A slither of excitement could be seen. "Aeris deserves only the best."

The best? Of those flowers? Where would they put…Tifa's mouth popped open and then she closed them. "That's a great idea!" She said, beaming at him.

In the night, she did not see the thin film of pink that laced his cheekbones. He placed the can down on his Fenrir.

Humming a familiar tune, Tifa quickly collected a couple dozen more before bringing them to their only source of light. Selecting the ones with complete, full petals and straight green stems like he had, and then discarding the ones that didn't fit her 'criteria', she clutched them gently for a moment. This was a bit of a problem.

"Cloud?" She could here him shuffling around not too far away.

"Hm?" His answer was muffled. Maybe he was further away then she thought.

"I'm going to put mine next to your motorcycle." The ground surrounding the motorcycle was near the road, thus providing a considerable amount of flat, hard soiled ground. Plus, they would be near the light.

"The wind might blow them away." He called.

"That's true…" she muttered, berating herself mentally for not realizing it. "How about you bring back as many flowers as you can, and I'll pick them out?

"Alright." He answered, his voice sounding much closer then before.

He appeared behind her, wadding through the last of the field. His arms overflowed with Marigolds. A few were even caught between his teeth.

She chuckled at the site. "I hope you didn't crush most of them." He reminded her briefly of a farmer hugging his sack of bound, ripened wheat.

Cloud placed them on the ground, gradually spreading his arms wider as he let them go. Some on top of the huge pile tumbled down the mound. "I didn't."

"I see I have my work cut out for me tonight." Tifa said amusedly.

He straightened, brushing off stray dirt.

"I planned on doing this for a long time, but I couldn't bring myself to." He said.

Looking away, he wiped absently at a spot on his vest that didn't appear dirty at all. "Thanks for coming with me, Tifa. I know I can't thank you enough-"

"Would you stop?" She cut in softly. He gazed up to see her smiling at him. "You're making me sound like some selfish old brat. And besides, I am your best friend, you'd better start expecting it on a regular basis."

She waved off his surprised expression, bending down to sort through the huge pile. "Now go and get me some more flowers." She said not looking at him, pretending to be stern.

She heard a chuckle and then more shuffling as he returned to the task at hand. Well no, she couldn't really call it a task. She was really enjoying this. In fact, this was one of the very few times she'd enjoyed picking any kind of flowers.

Her grin faded. And he was leaving tomorrow. It had been a good idea to tell him to go, she was not regretting that. And though she was sad, she wouldn't stop him from leaving no matter how much she wanted to. He really needed this, and she was willing to let him go for as long as it took. She would miss him, and so would several others…she just hoped he didn't take too incredibly long.

She let out a lax sigh, fingers brushing against each flower gently. She realized this was the first time they had spent any time together alone in years without any potential disasters looming over them. It was peaceful and spending time with her life-long friend like this was almost a dream come true. Tifa rubbed her arms, and refocused her attention onto the flowers.

The night passed relatively quickly and pretty soon, she knew it must have been past midnight. Cloud had come back many times already, and she made sure to keep up with his pace. Of course it was near impossible, but she still tried any way. He stopped after a few more rounds and helped her separate the 'perfect' ones from the 'imperfect' ones. By now, both mounds had grown taller then the knee-high grass around them, the width of them however, was much more impressive.

Some more time past with only Tifa's humming and Cloud's usual stillness. Both worked diligently and soon finished what was left. Pushing away the pile of inadequate ones, Cloud came beside her and placed the ones he deemed 'worthy' closer to hers. Needless to say, with both good piles combined, it was not even half of what they had originally.

Glancing at hers, he immediately noticed one flower sitting on top of Tifa's pile was missing a petal. Reaching out, he grasped it between his fingers.

"Tifa, look over my stack." He said, tossing another one from hers away.

She nodded, getting his hint. Though she doubted she would find anything wrong with his. Deciding it would be better to double-check anyway, she prodded through. Shockingly, soon she was not only throwing away one, but also many and she could tell he was doing similar actions to her heap. Perhaps they were both too tired. Or maybe they had gotten the good and bad ones mixed up? Peering over behind her, she saw broken and torn Marigolds all over. Nope. They hadn't mixed them up. Shrugging, she went back to work.

Her eyebrow rose as she ended up with only two good flowers, each in one hand. Looking over at Cloud, she saw him do the same. They now had a total of eight good flowers.

"That's…weird." Was all he managed to say.

She sighed. "Looks like we're going to have to get more."

He nodded. "Want to switch?"

Tifa rounded at him, pretending to be offended. "What, you didn't think I did a good job?"

"No!" Cloud said, his gloved hands rose defensively. "T-that's not what I meant-"

"Oh, you know I'm only kidding." Tifa grinned, giving his raised hands a playful slap. Standing up, she dusted herself off. "Alright then, I'll be back soon."

An hour later brought them to the same position as before. She dug through his choices as he dug through hers. This time, they had a complete collection of twelve good flowers.

"Okay." Tifa said; her brow furrowed at the ones they'd thrown out. "We're not doing something right here."

They both stood up. Cloud scratched his head. If this kept up, there was no way they could collect the number of flowers he wanted by morning.

"Maybe we're too rough when we take them off their branch." He said.

"Or maybe I put them down too roughly." Tifa added.

"You can use my sword to cut them off this time." He gestured to the weapon strapped to his back.

"You weren't using it earlier?"

"I thought it would destroy the flowers more then cut them." He answered extracting it from its sheath.

"I'm not sure I can handle that very well. It might slow me down." Tifa said contemplatively.

He held it out to her. "Try holding it."

He let go after making sure she had the sword securely in her grasp. Her arm faltered a little. It wasn't as heavy as she had thought it would be, but she certainly wouldn't be able to handle it like he did.

"Well…" she said, producing a swing with the massive blade. "I'll give it a try."

"Try coming back with smaller amounts also, I think the ones in the middle get crushed no matter how loosely we hold them." He suggested.

She nodded and headed off. Each time she cut; she made sure the slice went through evenly. Holding each bunch with as much care as she could muster, she brought back a couple dozen each time. When it came time to place down the last of it, she laid them apart, forming a line instead of a pile. Stepping gingerly over them, she started sorting once again. This time, instead of picking at every little defected spot on a Marigold, she lowered her expectation so there would be more left over.

Before long, she found herself finished first. Cloud was still turning each one over.

'He's going to keep that one.' She thought, watching as he raised a perfectly shaped flower. To her mild astonishment, he threw it out. Maybe her expectations were a lot lower then his. She watched repeatedly as he discarded ones she found no problem with. At least not from the angle she was looking at.

Catching his hand just in time for him to throw out the next one, she twisted it gently to look the flower over.

"I don't see anything wrong with this one." She said, bringing both of them up next to the fire-like light.

"The stem has a little tear." He stated.

She checked again. The flexible green stalk was cracked a little at the ends. Her eyebrow rose incredulously. "We could just cut it off."

"It won't look the same as the others."

She stared at him skeptically, "I cut this whole round's stems, there won't be a difference."

"Fair enough." He said with a little impatience. "But look at the petals, they aren't evenly spaced."

"None of them are evenly spaced, Cloud. One blow of the wind messes them up."

He glared at her. For some reason, he felt the need to justify his reasons. "You don't know how to sort them."

"Your expectations are too high." She countered firmly.

A glaring fest ensued.

"Look!" She said, swiping the jar of fireflies, intent on proving the one flower worthy.

Unfortunately, her fingers missed the target. Both watched dazedly as it crashed to the ground. Several bright spots burst into the air, illuminating everything within a five feet radius.

It was so quiet; crickets could be heard chirping nearby.

A chuckle erupted from Tifa's mouth. Her eyes widened, covering her mouth quickly with her free hand wondering where that had come from. Then Cloud chuckled. And then Tifa, trying to stifle another bizarre bout of mirth, followed with a giggle. The giggle lengthened, transforming into simple laughter. Cloud joined in. Soon enough, bellyaching chortles were erupting from both mouths. Doubling over, the flower they recently argued over fell to the ground as both clutched their midriff. Tifa stumbled forward, bumping into Cloud's body.

They were heaving now, gasping and laughing against each other. Cloud toppled backwards, Tifa tumbling down with him. Tears leaked from their eyes and Tifa's form fell plastered over his. Too tired to move, her laughter stopped abruptly from the hiccup that jolted her whole body. Then it resumed. And Cloud couldn't seem to stop either.

Tifa buried her face into his chest, giggles wracking her body. A couple minutes were spent, bodies shaking and trembling on top of each other. Her forehead touched the bare skin of his neck and she could feel their laughter die down. His arms remained around her as they gasped for breath.

"I'm tired, Cloud." Tifa muttered into his vest.

All she got from him was another chuckle.

They stayed in that position for a long time, fireflies flickering all over. The area around them was oddly warm, oddly…comforting.

When they woke up, dawn was only minutes away. The warmth dissipated as they separated, refreshed even though they had barely gotten a few hours of sleep.

"I understand what you mean now, Tifa," was the only thing he said before they clambered on the bike for home. And she only smiled in response.

They never finished what they had planned hours ago.

.……………………………………o

'_til next time…_


End file.
